Irish High Court refuses to arrest NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden if he lands in Ireland

The U.S. has reached out to contact Irish authorities and have requested a provisional arrest warrant be issued for Edward Snowden if he lands in Ireland, reports the Irish Times.

The request specified that Snowden was charged with the unauthorized disclosure of national defense information. The letter from the U.S. embassy says, “Between on or about 5 June 2013 and 9 June 2013, classified information was published on the internet and in print by multiple newspapers including the ‘Washington Post’ and the ‘Guardian’. The articles and internet postings by the ‘Washington Post’ and the ‘Guardian’ included classified documents that were marked ‘Top Secret’.”

The request was made under the Extradition Act of 1965, which states that a request for extradition be supported by the original or authenticated copy of the initial conviction, a statement of each offence specifying the time and place of commission, a copy of relevant enactments of the requesting country, and as accurate a description possible of the person claimed.

Judge Mac Eochaidh said that he was satisfied that the application met most of the necessary requirements, but he also remarked that he was compelled to deny the request because it did not state specifically where these alleged offences took place.

Judge Mac Eochaidh is quoted as saying that, “if it is the case that the offences took place outside of the territory of the United States of America, the question will arise as to whether there is extraterritorial effect in respect of the US offences, but more importantly, whether the Irish equivalent offences have an extraterritorial effect or aspect to them.” This essentially means that if the alleged offences piled against Snowden happened outside of the U.S., the offences may be exempt from U.S. jurisdiction, and also against Ireland’s jurisdiction to extradite Snowden.